A blog about the Big Four of the English Premier League

Porto-United: The Return of the Jedi

Note to Vishwa:I was going to title it thus anyway. You beat me to the buzzer. Great minds think alike brother 😉

As it has already generated a lot of interest on this blog, this post will be A Tale of Two Halves. One half’s description will stop, for all practical purposes, at the 6th minute. Oh and maybe two other bits. The other half’s 45+3 minutes of injury time will be coming soon to a store near you as a DVD on ‘How to read the flight of a ball and make your central defensive partner look back in Business’. For al you investment-banker types who are used to a crisp summary at the beginning of a report, United won 1-0 at Estadio do Dragao, becoming the first British Club to win there. Ronaldo scored, everyone else defended, even Berba ran around and dropped back and everything. United are through to the semis. There, you can go back to your busy lives now. But remember, reading just the summary is what’s got all of us into this big mess…

It gets annoying when you spend the day working till 12 so that you time it perfectly to go to the common room to catch the match, only to see Zee Sports on! Apparently there are people in this world who want to watch Arsenal-Villareal and other such nonsensical matches. Disgusted, I trudged off to another place (and a bigger TV), which received only Ten Sports. Turns out to be a blessing in disguise. I could skip all the crap that those three fellows on Ten Sports spew (anyone knows who the heck they are?) and was pleasantly surprised to hear Martin and Andy commentating. I can only assume Ten was using Sky Sports’ feed. And thus we were spared the Ten Sports commentary of”‘Giggs (pause 50 seconds) Carrick (pause 50 more) Alves (pause)…” at which point you mute the television.

So, I caught the match from the 2nd minute, quite surprised to see Anderson on the pitch. It took me a while to even figure out what was going on… Rooney on the right, Giggs somewhere around the left, O’Shea at right back (but playing right next to Carrick at the moment I started watching, leading me to wonder what the heck Sir ALex was doing with a 3-5-2), it was quite a tactical formation that United put out. But all the tactics in all the world from either team couldn’t have accounted for what came in the 6th minute. I have been annoyed with Ronaldo myself before, and so was Sir Alex, before this match. But the Prodigal Son’s return to Porto was anything but sweet for the home game. Collecting a pass from Anderson 40 yards from the goal, Ronaldo looked up to see all the defenders running backwards. He decided to let them run, and did what the point of a football game originally is. Hit the ball, towards the goal. And when you’re World Player of the Year, the hit, goes in.

I had asked in the preview to this game, as to who would wear George Best’s jersey. Well it was, quite poetically, the New No. 7. The goal was enough to knock Porto off their stride for quite a major part of the remaing half. What was to follow was not anything close to the Benfica night though United did have a couple of more very good chances, with Vidic being the most obvious culprit. A corner from the far side was flicked on by O’shea and the incoming Vidic could only poke it over with his foot. Nothing like Kanu for West Brom a couple of seasons ago, of course, but still pretty bad. Giggs had a sweetly struck volley saved at the near post and the last move of the half also saw Berba going clean through but failing to reach the ball before the keeper. But defensively, United were looking quite composed, with no “Torres Moments” for Vidic.

It’s often said in cricket that fast bowlers hunt in pairs. But if there’s any pair that exemplifies that in football, it has to be Rio and Vidic. With one around, the other just becomes so much better – on the ball, off it, in the air, against the attacker. Rio was a man on a mission. He was on to Hulk every time he got close to the ball, and Lissandro Lopez was just slightly too small for Vidic. I mean, I alwasy get this fear about people like Wright-Philips, Walcott and now Lopez. Sure your fast and everything, but imagne running into Vidic and that pace. Annnyway, the second half was no conscious effort by United to contain, but with Berba going off for Nani and Anderson, who looks very likely to join the list of Gattuso, Essien, Mascerhano soon, giving way to Scholes, it was obvious that Sir Alex was not exactly going for a 5-0 either. With time running out and frustration mounting, Porto began to resort to tactics like this. To find a back-door entry into the match, perhaps.

But with the unflappable Van der Sar returning to being unflappable, and United heading for theis first clean sheet in like eons, this was to be United’s night through and through. And for all that never-beatern-by-a-British-club talk, you wondered what Porto did to get that record. Nothing much, going by the evidence of Wednesday’s game.

So, sweet double revenge for 2006. Mourinho knocked out, and then Porto. I simply love the guy who writes United’s scripts, total knack for the racy plot, with vengeance and everything. And now (snicker), the Arse. Go Silvestre!

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13 Responses

Of the ten sports dudes , that black dude is Carlton Palmer. Who played for Leeds if i am not wrong.He is a regular in almost all football gaffes galores. There is a legend that once carlton palmer was one-on-one with the keeper, he tried chipping the keeper, the chip was poorly executed and it cleared not only the goal but the first few rows of the stand. That was the first instance of the usage of one of the most oft-used words in football commentary “High,wide and not at all handsome”(i am not sure if the comment was on Palmer or the shot.). 🙂

I feel Anderson is of the Edgar Davids mould. “The one-man-engine-room” type. But to be honest, i wasnt quiet impressed with that fellows passing in that game particularly in the post 6th minute first-half. But cant forget that fellows contribution in last years trip to Anfield. He was everywhere.

It was a disciplined performance; The defence looked solid, rooney and giggs also had a great evening. Surely this should provide the required boost in confidence for our upcoming matches.

Against Arsenal, i hope they produce some dazzling football and leave us with yet another night to remember.

This British club haven’t won at Porto thing was taken too far. Like really, winning at Porto isn’t the pinnacle of sporting
success that will be remembered 50 years on.

Arsenal were the first English team to win at Milan last year, and the press didn’t go bananas then quoting the fact in every single article and match report before and after the game. Its porto for heaven’s sake.

I don’t like the fact that Benitez has displaced Wenger in incurring Fergie’s wrath. So here’s to the semi-final renewing the Viera-Keanesque hatred between the clubs and the managers and lets hope a few slices of pizza are thrown in as well..

Ferguson gave up on Wenger because Arsenal gave up on winning trophies. People might hope for this encounter to change that, but I don’t see Arsenal being able to get past either Chelsea in the FA cup or Man Utd in the CL.

If you think too much has been said and made about the Porto game and the trivia about your victory at Milan went unnoticed to the whole wide world then you are wrong.

The Porto victory is certainly not the Pinnacle of sporting success. Porto being unbeaten @ home against british clubs was just a measure of their strength and to reassure the fact that Utd were up against tough opponents. That victory deserved an odd mention in the papers which i think it got.

And coming to Arsenal s victory at Milan. Almost all papers highlighted Arsenal as the first English team to win at the San Siro and one went on to say that the victory would inculcate the needed confidence in to other English clubs that Milan can be beaten at the San Siro. And your wonder-boy Fabregas waited no further to remark that “Arsenal can beat any team in Europe and that he ll be aiming for a Domestic and European cup double.” So think before you ink bro!

Vieira-Keanesque fights both on and off the pitch are things that i would quite like to see again but then no one but Vieira and Keane are capable of producing moments like that . But Fabregas-Anderson battle would be a battle worth a watch.

Yeah, I don’t think we’ll ever get Viera-Keanes again. Truth to be said, Arsenal-United has slightly toned down ever since those two left. And since the 4-0 FA Cup mauling last year (hee hee). And I also doubt Ferguson will play Anderson against Arsenal. It might be Scholes and Giggs in the middle though, he’s done it before against English clubs.

whitelighter,Ducky… Stop clucking before your eggs hatch… Arsenal is as focussed as ever before. Arshavin will run on evryones ass in the FA CUp. watch out in the Champions league as well. Manutd is perhaps the team made with the most useless players in the world. Berbatov is so stupid to watch playing. Manutd dont have a proper no9. Giggs is too old to play on the wings and the performances against wigan ,bolton, stoke etc dont exactly count as proper performances. You are seriously lacking a left winger and def Nani(poor mans michael jackson look alike) and Park ( thuuuuuh) dont exactly count as proper players.

We will watch out in the Champs League for what, Andrei? He’s cup-tied boyo. And even when he isn’t, clever Mr. Wenger plays Denilson and all and let’s Ballack simply stride all over that midfield. ONE day I root for the Arse and they take it up… well, the arse!